Alt-Nation: A Celebration, A Film, and Shows You Don’t Want to Miss

Before we begin the roundup, I have to congratulate the National Champion Providence College Men’s Hockey team! I had the thrill of seeing the championship game last Saturday and the atmosphere was electric. Congrats boys, you’ve earned it! On another note, to hear some tasty cuts from some of these upcoming shows, the best in local rock ‘n’ roll, old school, rock, R&B, soul and punk come down to the E&O Tap in Providence on Thurs, April 16 where I’ll stage my monthly coup d’état of the tunes from 9pm to midnight.

From The Living Room to The Parlour: 40 years of Local Music!

In April 1975, on Westminster St in downtown PVD, brothers Randy and Brian Hien opened the first of what would be three locations of The Living Room. The Living Room became a place where, thanks to the vision and spirit of the late great Randy Hien, every aspiring musician had a chance to realize their dreams.  Longtime Living Room employees (and now owners of The Parlour) Aaron Jaehing and Gregory Rourke along with Brian Hien will host a two-day celebration of the 40^th anniversary of The Living Room opening. The Parlour will host this celebration of The Living Rooms over two days packed with great local music.  Sat, April 18 will feature performances by Pistol Shot Gypsy, Hope Anchor, Viking Jesus, That’ll Learn ‘Ya, Joe Silva (The Threats), Brian McKenzie (Kilgore), James “Boney” Beaupre (The Probers) and Hillbilly Graham Crackers. On Sun, April 19, Extinction Machine, Sasquatch and The Sick-A-Billys, The Worried, Neutral Nations, Two Guys and Another Guy, Bill Keough, and more to be announced will rock the house. The shows start early with the doors set to open at 4pm, and the music runs all night.

Ex Hex

I’ve been stoked to see Ex Hex from the minute this show was announced. Ex Hex is an all-female punk power trio that released one of last year’s best albums, appropriately called Rips. Ex Hex is led by singer/guitarist Mary Timony who is best known for fronting indie rock bands like Autoclave, the Boston-based Helium, and most recently, the super group Wild Flag. Ex Hex are like a mix of the power pop of Cheap Trick with the punk rock of Johnny Thunders and The Heartbreakers boiled up and dished out with a heavy dosage of sass. This will be a show for the ages.

Ex Hex, Kuroma and Littlefoot rock The Parlour on Apr 25.

Roddy Radiation (from The Specials)

The only time I got to see The Specials was in the late ’90s in the basement of the Middle East nightclub. I was staking out a spot near the stage when I got shoved out of the way by a bodyguard who was escorting Robert Smith from The Cure through the crowd up a ramp to the backstage area. If the king of goth new wave loves The Specials, how could anyone not? The Specials, for those unfamiliar, were the leading band behind the late ’70s ska revival that mixed a rocksteady beat with a punk attitude. Roddy Radiation was the lead guitarist and songwriter for The Specials. In addition to having perhaps the coolest stage name in rock ‘n’ roll, Radiation will be playing a mix of tunes he wrote for The Specials and tunes from his other projects while backed by The Scotch Bonnets.

Roddy Radiation of The Specials, The Scotch Bonnets, and The Copacetics will rock it rock steady at The Parlour on Apr 26.

The Final Obsession

The Final Obsession is a new short film that delves into the world of a made-for-TV actress and the dramas that surround her life. The Final Obsession has a lot of connections to the local music community. The film features Miss Wensday Greenbaum (Miss Wensday & The Cotillions) and Dan White (The Cobra-matics) as actors. The movie was also written and directed by Adam Theroux (Hank Sinatra Jr., Bi Anal Ham Sandwich, and Girl Haggard).  In addition to the screening of The Final Obsession there will be screening of some other shorts and live performances from Dan White, Eric and the Nothing, and Denver Boot.

The Final Obsession Premiere is at AS220 on May 1. The fun starts at 8pm.  

Email music news to mclarkin33@gmail.com